Paradox Interactive - Inside Paradox @ US Gamer

by Couchpotato, 2013-09-27 00:12:40

US Gamer has a new article calling Paradox Interactive the the strangest company in games.

Now, don't get me wrong, strange can often be a good thing and I certainly am not using this term pejoratively, but Paradox Interactive is strange. Its portfolio is a hodge-podge of critically acclaimed genre titles, surprise successes and widely panned, sometimes alarmingly broken disasters. The eccentric image it projects extends within as well as without, with would-be interviewees facing questions like "Are you a Stark or a Lannister? A Kirk or a Picard?" some of which may be delivered to them by a man who has used the title Vice President of Business Development and Manager of the Unicorn Division.

Its PR philosophy sits somewhere between openness and frankness. In an industry where PRs usually strictly control the flow of information between writers and developers, games journalists are encouraged to email development teams directly, while Paradox staff openly, candidly reflect on their failures as much as they celebrate their successes. It's beholden to no-one and, should it feel the need to adopt a corporate anthem, it wouldn't be inappropriate for it to be singing "I did it my way," though with the addendum "and sometimes it really didn't work."

The history of Paradox Interactive is also a little strange and it begins, as so many of the best gaming tales do, with board games. Then, a famous barbarian appears and later an Argentine software pirate inspires a key business decision.

This is the story of the Swedes who say what they think and who try what they fancy.